Synchronicity

This story about synchronicity (a part of intuition, and originally titled “Allowing unfolding”) was sent out to my email list in June, 2016…

In January 1989—nearly three decades ago—Professor Miraca Gross found 31 of the brightest children in Australia. Each with an IQ of over 160 (appearing at the top 0.003 percent of the population or rarer), these children were found in South Australia (18), Victoria (6), the Australian Capital Territory (3), New South Wales (3), and Tasmania (1). Perhaps because of Miraca’s home city at the time (Adelaide), the children were all from the east coast of Australia. None were drawn from Western Australia.

Miraca then selected less than half of these 31 children to participate in what has become an internationally renowned study, that of exceptionally gifted children. Similarly to the famous Seven Up! television series, Miraca has followed these children through the 1990s, 2000s, and many of them continue to appear in the media in 2016. While I’ve only met and presented at a gifted conference alongside Miraca once (and another coming up in September this year), I continue to reference her findings in my coaching for all clients—not just the bright ones!

Why am I telling you this story?

Yesterday evening, after picking up some dinner and being stuck in Perth traffic, I finally arrived home. A silver Lexus pulled into my apartment complex before me, and I used my remote to buzz him in to the underground garage. As we both exited our cars, the driver, an older man, said a brief hello. At the elevator, he moved a little closer and asked one of my least-favourite questions: “So, what do you do?”

I told him of my work as a coach, including work with bright families.

His face lit up. “I am the parent of one of the children in Miraca Gross’ study!” he proudly told me. Of course, this led to a much, much longer conversation.

Afterwards, I considered the probability of this kind of synchronicity (or serendipity). As far as I know, though there are many gifted coaches in other parts of the world, I am the only gifted coach in Australia. And while I’m certainly no statistician, it would seem to me that we can use the previous percentage of <0.003% plus the fact that none of the children in that study are in my current city, to come to the conclusion that this kind of meeting had a probability closest to zero. I’m not sure the common response of “it’s a small world” is a good enough explanation for happenings like this either.

Have you noticed events like this in your own life?

The right person?

The right time?

The right song?

The right phrase?

The right book?

How do these kinds of events happen—and how can we create (or allow) more of them?

Colleague Slade Roberson talks about a merging of the words serendipity and synchronicity into a new word, synchrodipity:

synchrodipity: The delightful unfolding of events or manifestation of intentions that seem to be evidence of a benevolent Universal Intelligence or the interconnectivity of all things. Also, the sense of well-being that results from the common experience of being in the Flow.

Wouldn’t it be fantastic if we could draw on this sense of well-being more often?

It has been my experience that when we can let go and allow things to resolve themselves, to line up, and especially to work in our favour, they usually do.

Sure, the “letting go and allowing” part of this may be the most challenging. But it’s also the most essential.

I hope that wherever you are in the world today, whatever you are creating, and whenever you expect it to come to fruition, that you can sit back, relax, do less(!), and allow the gentle unfolding to continue effortlessly.